The T-Statistic Approach to Inference for Inequality Indices: The Issue of Grouping Variability

Nicolas Herault () and Stephen P. Jenkins ()
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Nicolas Herault: University of Bordeaux
Stephen P. Jenkins: London School of Economics

No 17972, IZA Discussion Papers from Institute of Labor Economics (IZA)

Abstract: Ibragimov, Kattuman, and Skrobotov (Econometric Reviews, 2025) propose a ‘t-statistic’ approach to inference for inequality indices building on results provided by Ibragimov and Müller (Journal of Business & Economic Statistics, 2010), and they and Midões and de Crombrugghe (Journal of Economic Inequality, 2023) evaluate its performance. We highlight a feature of the t-statistic approach – ‘grouping variability’ – that has been understudied to date, showing how this complicates inference for inequality indices.

Keywords: asymptotic inference; t-statistic inference approach; inequality; grouping variability (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: C14 C46 C81 D31 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2025-06
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